ADF

Realistic-looking news anchors delivering propaganda, popular television characters singing terrorist battle songs, online chatbots that tailor their responses to a user’s interests — these are all ways terrorist groups are using artificial intelligence (AI) to spread their message and recruit. As AI technologies have spread across the internet, they have become tools that terrorist groups such as the Islamic State group (IS) and al-Qaida use to reach out to young people in Africa and elsewhere who have grown up with the internet and get their information from social media. Cloaking terrorist propaganda in authentic-looking content helps get the messages past…

Up to 55 Malian soldiers, including two generals, were arrested on August 14 and accused of attempting to overthrow Col. Assimi Goïta’s military junta. Among those arrested were Gen. Abass Dembele, former governor of the Mopti region, and Gen. Nema Sagara, one of the highest-ranking female officers in Mali’s Air Force. Dembele was dismissed in May when he demanded an investigation into allegations that the Malian Army had killed civilians in the village of Diafarabe. Sagara was lauded for her role in fighting rebel groups in 2012. Gen. Daoud Aly Mohammedine, Mali’s security minister, said the alleged plot began on…

As Nigeria faces a range of threats to its coastal and inland waterways, it is building an elite Naval unit to undertake some of the most dangerous and complex operations. These missions include hostage rescue, counterpiracy, and tracking terrorists on water and land. In August, the Nigerian Navy inducted 33 graduates into the Special Boat Service (SBS). Less than half of those who began the grueling 36-week Basic Operator Capability Course completed it, This Day reported. “You have demonstrated mental tenacity, physical toughness and a will consistent with special operations forces around the world,” Rear Adm. O.O. Soyemi, flag officer…

A South African university has launched an anti-poaching campaign to inject rhino horns with harmless radioactive isotopes that customs agents can detect. In a collaborative project involving the University of the Witwatersrand, nuclear energy officials and conservationists, five animals at a rhino orphanage have been injected in what the university hopes will be the start of a mass treatment of the declining rhino population, The Associated Press reports. The program began at a preserve in 2024, when scientists injected about 20 rhinos with isotopes in medical trials. Even at low levels, radiation detectors can recognize the isotopes at airports and…

As Russian involvement in Africa has shifted from the private Wagner Group mercenary force to government control under the Africa Corps, information operations also have evolved. Wagner widened influence campaigns and information operations in Africa as part of its work on the continent. After its leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, died in a mysterious plane crash in 2023, Russia’s information operations took on a new look that mixes government and private efforts, according to research organization All Eyes on Wagner. “The private sector now plays a central role in Russia’s soft-power arsenal, blending experienced spin doctors, content agencies and discreet conduits of…

The future of conflict in Africa is being built on three pillars: mercenaries, drones and false information, according to analyst Alessandro Arduino. In his new book, “Money for Mayhem,” Arduino, an affiliate lecturer at King’s College London, sees future conflicts in Africa being built around private military contractors capable of simultaneously deploying experienced fighters, operating combat drones and running deceptive social media  campaigns that largely target young people. “Africa is a perfect storm for this sort of thing happening,” Arduino told ADF in an interview. More than any other groups, Russia’s Africa Corps — and the Wagner Group before it…

Seven armed pirates attacked and boarded a cargo ship sailing from Cameroon to the Democratic Republic of Congo on May 29. While most of the crew locked themselves in the citadel, one crew member was injured and abducted by the hijackers during the attack. It is not clear whether the kidnap victim was released. The hijacking between Nigeria and São Tomé and Príncipe was one of 12 piracy incidents reported in the Gulf of Guinea region in the first half of this year. There were 18 such incidents last year. The uptick coincides with an increase of kidnappings for ransom…

Nearly 40 people died in the early hours of July 27 when terrorists from the Islamic State-Central African Province attacked a Catholic church in Komanda in the Ituri province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The attack was the latest episode of brutal violence by the group also known as the Allied Democratic Forces. As the government of the DRC attempts to make peace with M23 rebels in the eastern part of the country, Islamic State-Central African Province (IS-CAP) has increased its attacks against civilian targets across the region. As in Komanda, those attacks often target unarmed civilians gathered…

After extensive discussion during the African Chiefs of Defense Conference in Nairobi in May strengthening security partnerships and facing shared threats, Kenya and its co-host, the United States Africa Command, have set about putting words into action. Kenya Defence Force chief Gen. Charles M. Kahariri and then-commander of AFRICOM Gen. Michael Langley issued a joint statement at AFRICOM headquarters in Stuttgart, Germany, on August 14, calling on African countries to coordinate efforts. “We can revitalize multilateralism, working to overcome increasing distrust amongst member states, geopolitical tensions and the risk of group indecision,” the statement read. “No one country can address…

Authorities arrested six people in South Africa on August 19 in connection with an international rhinoceros horn trafficking network. They made the arrests after a seven-year investigation by the Hawks, the South African Police Service branch that specializes in fighting organized crime. The suspects are accused of smuggling 964 horns worth $14.1 million to illegal markets in Southeast Asia. They face charges of fraud, theft and violating a national biodiversity law. Authorities made the arrests days after a Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime report highlighted East and Southern Africa as a pivotal node for organized crime — including the smuggling and…